The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) currently uses shipping containers as components for transportable shelters to protect troops from ballistics and explosives. This system is known in the art as a Hardened Alternative Trailer System (HATS).
The HATS structures must comply with the U.S. Department of State Certification Standard for Forced Entry and Ballistic Resistance of Structural Systems, SDSTD01.01, without exceeding stringent ISO weight and dimensional specifications. USACE has conducted considerable laboratory research to develop a HATS shelter which concurrently meets most standards. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/886,248 (the '248 application) teaches precise specifications developed by the government to meet ISO Standard No. 668:2013 for twenty-foot structures.
At present, over four hundred structures having the specifications taught in the '248 application have been fielded “in theater.” At a cost of several hundred thousand USD per structure, this technology represents investment in the range of $100,000,000 to the U.S. government. However, these structures are limited to no more than twenty feet in length, and no more than 8 feet wide or 8.6 feet high, which can restrict the utility of the structures.
To address this problem, USACE conducted extensive research and testing to develop precise specifications for forty foot structures. These extensive specifications are taught in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/461,226 filed Mar. 16, 2017.
However, there is a continuing unmet need for considerably larger structures with much greater width and height than are permitted under current ISO standards.